Why do people allow kids to play sports at the expense of academics?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They do it so their kids will be more popular. Plain and simple.

I guess popular is one way to phrase it - I think kids who excel in team sports gain a lot from their experience: they develop leadership skills, learn how to interact well with others (kids and adults), stay physically fit (which can contribute to physical attractiveness and good health), build confidence from success that comes from hard work and training, and gain the respect of their peers for their accomplishments in that sport. This is a nice complement to their accomplishments in the classroom and, IMO, helps prepare them to be a successful adult. It's less about being "cool" and more about being well rounded and developing life skills that help them interact better with others.

This comes from someone who got excellent grades and test scores, went to a very good college but was not encouraged to do sports by her parents and wish she had been. Took up sports later in life and learned that I was actually a pretty good athlete.

Ha. I just hope that they learn enough so that if they want to join a rec league for fun when they are older they will have a little experience under their belt. They will be well rounded if anything by the time they leave my house..

[Anonymous]

Read Brain Rules by John Medina (among many other sources). Kids who play competitive sports in school -- especially in later grades, like high school -- are more likely also to be the kids who get good grades. Athletic activity is good for kids both physically and mentally. It's good for self-esteem and confidence. Kids who suffer through losses, wind-sprints, freezing cold practices, cuts/bruises/injuries, and tough coaches (etc.) are going to have stronger strength of character than kids who don't have those experiences. Kids who play sports are more likely to have healthy habits (not as likely to be smokers, potheads, or druggies) and are probably more likely to be the kind of kids you'd like your kids to be friends with. Teammates on a sports team are often like a guaranteed group of friends too. There are always bad apples in any school -- athletes included -- but they're the exception. Some kids can overdo it too -- I met a kid a few years ago who played on 7 teams in a season, between football, soccer, and lacrosse. That seems just nuts to me and I can see that kid being so tired (not to mention the parents too) that he has no time or energy left for school. But, if done in moderation, like one team each season, then the upside seems to be far greater (for the above reasons) than the downside of losing some time that could be spent doing extra academics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Read Brain Rules by John Medina (among many other sources). Kids who play competitive sports in school -- especially in later grades, like high school -- are more likely also to be the kids who get good grades. Athletic activity is good for kids both physically and mentally. It's good for self-esteem and confidence. Kids who suffer through losses, wind-sprints, freezing cold practices, cuts/bruises/injuries, and tough coaches (etc.) are going to have stronger strength of character than kids who don't have those experiences. Kids who play sports are more likely to have healthy habits (not as likely to be smokers, potheads, or druggies) and are probably more likely to be the kind of kids you'd like your kids to be friends with. Teammates on a sports team are often like a guaranteed group of friends too. There are always bad apples in any school -- athletes included -- but they're the exception. Some kids can overdo it too -- I met a kid a few years ago who played on 7 teams in a season, between football, soccer, and lacrosse. That seems just nuts to me and I can see that kid being so tired (not to mention the parents too) that he has no time or energy left for school. But, if done in moderation, like one team each season, then the upside seems to be far greater (for the above reasons) than the downside of losing some time that could be spent doing extra academics.

This exactly. Which is why the professionalize toon of kids sports makes me insane. Let them play even if they're not amazing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Question says it all. Unless your kid is truly scholarship material, I seriously don't understand why you'd let your kid play sports when they are bringing in low Bs. I know colleges like sports because the student seems more well-rounded, but that's stupid if it comes at the expense of grades. [/quote

Some kids aren't geniuses, and therefore, parents think that they'll shine through sports - maybe earn a scholarship, for example.

But I agree. In this country, sports trump academics. This is not the case elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

My DD is an equestrian. She has LDs and riding is somewhere she can shine. It's something she does well naturally, which is a huge change from school, which is really hard and causes her a lot of anxiety. Riding is her "safe place" as she calls it. If I had to chose between paying for riding and paying for tutoring, I'd probably pick riding because it's so good for her self esteem and may be the one place she is really happy.

Oh and I'd be thrilled if she was a B student.

[Anonymous]

Here is why I don't care about my kids grades. Because, the premise that A students have better opportunities than B students is false.

First of all, there are many on-ramps to success in this country. A C student can get into a college -- maybe community college, and excel. Then, they transfer to a decent/good/excellent school. Then they go to a top grad school/professional school.

Well rounded is more important in life than just academics. In the real world (where we work), the ability to work as a team and create new ideas is more important than pure intellect. What matters is understanding what the customer wants or needs, and figuring out how to do it. Everyone has customers: Doctors have patients; scientists have sponsors; etc. Those probably were not A students.

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[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Question says it all. Unless your kid is truly scholarship material, I seriously don't understand why you'd let your kid play sports when they are bringing in low Bs. I know colleges like sports because the student seems more well-rounded, but that's stupid if it comes at the expense of grades.

You don't need to understand it because it's not your child nor is it any of your business. Nothing like a sanctimonious "I don't understand people who aren't as good a parent as I" post to get your day started, hunh?

So peopke can't wonder about things that don't directly affect them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For some kids, Bs might be what they are getting for their best efforts and sports is an area where they can easily excel. We all have our strengths and challenges and we need to learn to make the best of our strengths and work hard at our challenges. It's good to have a balance in our days of things we are good at and things we have to work at. In addition, athletic participation teaches kids a lot about cooperation, leadership, how to win and lose in a graceful manner, persistence, and discipline, not to mention the physical fitness and health benefits.

Why do some people allow their kids to spend all their time on academics and make no effort to improve their athletic skills?

Because athletic skills aren't important.

[Anonymous]

[b]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For some kids, Bs might be what they are getting for their best efforts and sports is an area where they can easily excel. We all have our strengths and challenges and we need to learn to make the best of our strengths and work hard at our challenges. It's good to have a balance in our days of things we are good at and things we have to work at. In addition, athletic participation teaches kids a lot about cooperation, leadership, how to win and lose in a graceful manner, persistence, and discipline, not to mention the physical fitness and health benefits.

Why do some people allow their kids to spend all their time on academics and make no effort to improve their athletic skills?

Because kids with good grades have more options and opportunities than kids with bad grades. If two kids are competing for the same opportunity, the kid with the good grades is going to have an edge over the low B kid.

You are oversimplifying and ignoring PP's point. Let's say you have a B student who, if they dropped all of their other sports and focused exclusively on academics, can only really bring their grades up to a B+ overall. An increase from B to B+, all else being equal, may result in some better opportunities, but the opportunities for a B+ student who does nothing else still may not be as good as for a child with Bs who is also a dedicated athlete who has developed (and can demonstrate) maturity, teamwork, leadership, etc.) would be. They also may be much happier and emotionally healthy getting Bs and playing sports than if they were getting B+s and not playing sports.

If we're talking about a kid who could be making straight As without sports but is barely making Cs with sports, I will grant that there's good reason to reassess the place of sports in the kid's life. But those students are very few and far between, and they're certainly not representative of all student athletes.

Serious question, why is it so commonly assumed that playing sports, gives one all of these skills. I played sports growing up and yes it was exercise and fun, which in and of itself as s worthwhile, but I honestly don't think it did jack shit as far as improving my teamwork, leadership, etc. this argument always seemed like something parents want to believe to justify the vast amount of money and time they devote to their kids' sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids do better in school when they have are doing sports. I've seen grades for both my kids decline when they didn't have an after school sport. They both do better academically when they have a busier routine. They certainly wouldn't come home and study all afternoon if they didn't have sports practices. Sports are a great outlet after school for them and they come home happy, ready for dinner and then they do their homework.

But what about downtime?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They do it so their kids will be more popular. Plain and simple.

I could see that if it were a school sport, but since club sports have become the norm, how does that help with a kid's popularity?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For some kids, Bs might be what they are getting for their best efforts and sports is an area where they can easily excel. We all have our strengths and challenges and we need to learn to make the best of our strengths and work hard at our challenges. It's good to have a balance in our days of things we are good at and things we have to work at. In addition, athletic participation teaches kids a lot about cooperation, leadership, how to win and lose in a graceful manner, persistence, and discipline, not to mention the physical fitness and health benefits.

Why do some people allow their kids to spend all their time on academics and make no effort to improve their athletic skills?

Because athletic skills aren't important.

I'd say both academics and athletics are important. If you are not helping your kids learn how to be fit and enjoy what their bodies are capable of accomplishing, you are doing them a disservice that can negatively impact their quality of life. I also have found that (generally speaking), boys feel better about themselves and worry less about bullying and social status if they are reasonably capable at sports. Posters above have linked to evidence of the link between sports and career success for girls.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:[b]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For some kids, Bs might be what they are getting for their best efforts and sports is an area where they can easily excel. We all have our strengths and challenges and we need to learn to make the best of our strengths and work hard at our challenges. It's good to have a balance in our days of things we are good at and things we have to work at. In addition, athletic participation teaches kids a lot about cooperation, leadership, how to win and lose in a graceful manner, persistence, and discipline, not to mention the physical fitness and health benefits.

Why do some people allow their kids to spend all their time on academics and make no effort to improve their athletic skills?

Because kids with good grades have more options and opportunities than kids with bad grades. If two kids are competing for the same opportunity, the kid with the good grades is going to have an edge over the low B kid.

You are oversimplifying and ignoring PP's point. Let's say you have a B student who, if they dropped all of their other sports and focused exclusively on academics, can only really bring their grades up to a B+ overall. An increase from B to B+, all else being equal, may result in some better opportunities, but the opportunities for a B+ student who does nothing else still may not be as good as for a child with Bs who is also a dedicated athlete who has developed (and can demonstrate) maturity, teamwork, leadership, etc.) would be. They also may be much happier and emotionally healthy getting Bs and playing sports than if they were getting B+s and not playing sports.

If we're talking about a kid who could be making straight As without sports but is barely making Cs with sports, I will grant that there's good reason to reassess the place of sports in the kid's life. But those students are very few and far between, and they're certainly not representative of all student athletes.

Serious question, why is it so commonly assumed that playing sports, gives one all of these skills. I played sports growing up and yes it was exercise and fun, which in and of itself as s worthwhile, but I honestly don't think it did jack shit as far as improving my teamwork, leadership, etc. this argument always seemed like something parents want to believe to justify the vast amount of money and time they devote to their kids' sports.

Sorry sports didn't work out for you, PP. Your argument seems like something people use to justify why they weren't that good at sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am the person you think you are describing. Solid B student who was involved in sports and other activities. My parents could have forced me to focus only on school in order to get straight As, but they knew it would take a toll on me mental health wise. Sure, I went to a top 50 college instead of a top 10, but I was happy and had a great high school and college experience. I now have a very successful and fulfilling career. I am fortunate my parents allowed me to be who I am.

Nowadays being a solid B student won't get you into a top 50.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because it gives some parents a social life. Because parents can't stand against the wall in the classroom and cheer their kid on through a test. Becuase no one will notice your new boots or stadium coat when Junior's report card shows up in your mailbox. Because the amount of time they spend with traveling and scheduling makes them feel like they are doing something important for their kid.

Bingo!